


Kanaria

by ShannynFaucheux



Category: Durarara!!
Genre: A little?, Alcohol, Awakusu-Kai, Canaries, Canon Divergence, Cigarettes, Death, Enka Music, Enka Singers, Feelings, Friendship, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Loneliness, Love, M/M, Memories, Metaphors, Old Age, Painting, Philosophy, Suicide, There is a second chapter to this, Yakuza, apple trees, sake
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-06-28 09:22:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19809373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShannynFaucheux/pseuds/ShannynFaucheux
Summary: Aozaki Shuu turned his head towards the sunset. On top of the hill was his long drawn friend; With a canvas in front of him, he was painting the apple trees of Utsunomiya..Twenty years after a clan war in Awakusu-Kai, the remaining members reunite for a drink.





	Kanaria

**Author's Note:**

> カナリア / Kanaria : Japanese, a canary.

Kanaria

Aozaki Shuu turned his head towards the sunset. On top of the hill was his long drawn friend; With a canvas in front of him, he was painting the apple trees of Utsunomiya.

He climbed the hill; Hiding the obvious shortness in his breath from himself. His one hand was in his pocket, the other was carrying a white bag. He stood by the owner of the canvas.

‘’- For years I told you not to sit hunched- ‘’ He gave a pat to the other’s back; ‘’- Look, now you really have a hunch back ‘’

The ex-executive of Awakusu gave a laugh tied in a smirk and put his brush down; ‘’- I’ve always been like this- ‘’ He stood up, two men joined in a hug; ‘’- I see you’re doing well ‘’ Shiki patted the other’s shoulder before he sat back down.

As Shiki continued his work, Aozaki sat onto the shiny green grass and took out his carton of cigarettes. He first extended it to Shiki;

‘’- Are you still not smoking? ‘’ On the other’s nod, he himself took out one and lit it. He then unpacked the white bag and took out a bottle of sake and two sake glasses; ‘’- Sake? ‘’ He asked.

‘’- Why not? ‘’ So Aozaki poured two sake, then extended one to Shiki; ‘’- _To Kaz._ ‘’

Shiki nodded as he realised, he barely remembered the executive’s face; _the executive who took his own life, when he fell into the hands of an another clan.._

‘’- _To Kazamoto_ ‘’

Glasses touched, Shiki lifted his glass a little towards the sky after he drank the shot. Aozaki extended his hand to the radio standing next to the feet of the canvas. He skipped between channels as Shiki shaded the apples on the field of trees. _The apples were red; he painted them green._

_Miyoshi Eiji_ ’s voice freed itself out from the radio; _‘ I want to go somewhere away, I want to gaze at an ocean that is unknown’_ , the enka singer was saying..

Aozaki sipped on the second shot of sake and watched the other work for some time. The weather was nice today, he laid a little on his elbows;

-‘’ What the fuck are you doing, Shiki? ‘’ The other didn’t count any seconds to answer;  
-‘’ I am painting, as you can see ‘’  
-‘’ No, like.. _what are you doing?_ ‘’

Shiki looked at him then; ‘’- I am waiting ‘’, his brush was lowered to his knees.

‘’- For what? ‘’

Shiki _really_ wanted to give an honest answer there. But then a face emerged from the distant sea he had inside his chest, hid itself in the red paint that he couldn’t ever bring himself to use. He shrugged then, and turned back to the canvas;

‘’- I’ve killed many, Aozaki. Children of one of those men will eventually find me.. _Revenge can wait a long time, you know_.. ‘’

Aozaki let out a gloomy sigh; ‘’- Don’t be that pessimistic, Shiki. It’s not good for the heart. ‘’ He said, then hummed to the chorus of the enka.

Shiki took a deep breath in. The tie was right inside his throat, once again, again and again, after all those years;

‘’- _This world took the great Orihara Izaya. Why would it wait for me, Aozaki?_ ‘’

Aozaki straightened up a little on those words. His one brow was lifted, he looked at his friend long and heavy;

‘’- You never got over it, right? ‘’

Shiki mixed some gray paint into the blue. 

For the sky.

Akabayashi took the responsibility of raising Akane after.. _whatever happened to his stupid father._ Aozaki got married, now had a boy of his own. Shiki knew himself well enough that he couldn’t take the responsibility of _an another life_ , and stayed alone. He bought a house on the hills of Utsunomiya, buried whatever he could under the damp soil of the apple trees.

-‘’ How is your kid doing? ‘’ Shiki asked to Aozaki.  
-‘’ He’s all over the place. Doesn’t stop for a fucking second ‘’ On the answer, a smile settled itself onto Shiki’s lips, it contrasted the lines he had near his eyes.

Some time passed, Aozaki prepared to leave; ‘’- I’ll meet Akabayashi at the usual place. You come too. ‘’

‘’- Why not? ‘’

* * *

Two days later, Shiki was standing in front of the small, mahogany wardrobe. His hand went to one of the white suits that he kept; he vacantly studied the patterns on it for some time. He then took out a burgundy jacket instead.

He stared himself in the mirror as he dressed, saw some white hair fallen into the black; Saw some darkness that never left his eyes. He tried to fix his hair, but then realised this alleyway of a man in front of him couldn’t be tamed with a simple brush.

He turned to the windowside when he was dressed;

‘’- I’ll be gone for couple of hours, okay, Iza? ‘’ Extending his index finger, he petted the canary inside the birdcage; ‘’- Try not to feel alone, it doesn’t work for you ‘’ He checked his bird’s water and food, then left the house.

Taking a Shinkansen to Ikebukuro; an hour and a half later, he was met with the certain smile of the pavements, he said hello to the sin-filled alleyways of ‘Bukuro.

He could never forget the shortest route to ‘ _Kanaria_ ‘. The place that four of them hanged around for years, the place they listened to old enka from the owner’s record player. _The place they drank their nightmares away, after blood-soaked nights.._

At the door, the owner, Rosanjin-san was waiting for him. He had gotten older too, there now was a cane, added to his simple traditional wear. Shiki gave a bow to him, as he was a father to them.

The old man, Rosanjin, didn’t need many words to talk to Shiki. He never needed; He would look at four of them, dragging a sake bottle to the table, then would ask;

_‘ Whose heart are you thinking about today? ‘_

Rosanjin saw that the answer inside the boy’s eyes hasn’t changed.

_A canary._

As they walked inside, Shiki saw that the only people inside were Akabayashi and Aozaki; ‘’- Did you close the place just for us, Rosanjin-san? ‘’

The old man gave a pat to Shiki’s back; ‘’- I could do that at least for my young boys, right? ‘’

‘’- What young boy Rosanjin-san? ‘’ Akabayashi pulled Shiki into a hard hug, then said; ‘’- This guy looked thirty before he was ten ‘’

‘’- That’s the soul aging first, kid ‘’ Rosanjin said, then with slow steps, went to the back to prepare the table.

The three sat to the table they always sat; The one in between, right beside the wall. The wall was in vintage brown and honey-yellow patterns, photographs, and some cut-outs from newspapers were hanged on it.

Shiki looked at the photograph where four chinpira were smirking in their cheap gold and hawaiian shirts;

-‘’ Is that me? ‘’ Shiki’s brows furrowed as he pointed the photograph;  
-‘’ Did you forget yourself? ‘’ Akabayashi said. Aozaki was busy litting himself a cigarette, he smirked.

Shiki replied to the red-headed one; ‘’- I wish I could. What a world _that_ would be ‘’

From the old record player, came the voice of _Miki Nakasone._ She sang, ‘ _Kawa wa Nagareru_ ‘. _The river flows._ The river flowed, the river took, the river buried..

‘ _That person’s heart is, cold._

 _That person, I was separated while I still loved_ ‘ She sang..

A while later Rosanjin-san came back with the sake. There were three of his sons at the table tonight. _He poured four sake._

Akabayashi then took out a belonging from his suit jacket. A pen, in linings gold, that belonged to Kazamoto. He put it next to _his_ sake cup. As the remaining three held their drinks up, they looked at the father;

Rosanjin gave his weight to his cane, his gaze traveled on his sons; ‘’- You’ve seen loss, children. You took violence, and counted it a friend. _You’ve taken life, and life took from you._ ‘’

‘’ – You’ve seen love, and you lost love- ‘’ Rosanjin told the same story that his father told him once too long ago; ‘’- Men like us.. we just lose, Mizuki, Shuu, Haruya- ‘’ His eyes teared up and he looked at the empty chair next to Akabayashi; ‘’- .. _Takaaki_ ‘’

He then stomped his old cane once, and nodded; ‘’ – _But you’ve lost well_. ‘’

Rosanjin faded away from the scene, the glasses joined in the simple harmony of ‘ cheers ‘..

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading. There will be a second chapter. 
> 
> Songs mentioned;
> 
> Miyoshi Eiji - Tooku e Ikitai ( copy pase: 遠くへ行きたい 三善英史 ) if you'd like to listen.
> 
> Miki Nakasone - Kawa wa Nagareru ( copy paste: 仲宗根美樹／川は流れる ) if you'd like to listen. ( I personally love this one so much )


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